Long days, sandy toes, warm breeze, salt water, long beach days and lazy days floating in the pool. Summer is in full swing now and between running around enjoying the season, sometimes we forget to pay extra attention to our hair. After working as a lifeguard in a water park with heavily chlorinated pools, my hair was nearly damaged beyond repair. It was honestly to the point that when my hair got wet, it was so weak that you could rub it between your fingers and it would just break off or “melt” as my mom liked to say. I was horrified that it got that bad even when I was actively washing and conditioning it following my shifts and doing all I could to save it. Unfortunately, my hair just couldn’t stand up to the crazy amounts of chlorine in those pools, but I learned the best tips for hair care to not only reverse the intense damage I did but also prevent it from happening again this summer.
1// Rinse Your Hair
When you leave the pool, try to rinse your hair as soon as possible with water. I would rinse with water and put in coconut spray for your trip home and to help with detangling. You can make your own with grabbing a small spray bottle, add coconut milk, coconut water and squeezed lemons. When you make this, I encourage you to put it in the cooler and back in the fridge when you get home because it can turn sour. The lemons may also lighten your hair a little.
2// Deep condition
When you get home deep condition your hair even if its just as simple as throwing coconut oil in your hair for an hour or overnight. If you went to a water park, this is much more important because of the amount of chemicals they use.
3// Stay hydrated
When you stay hydrated, your hair will be happier. It’s always important to stay hydrated especially in summer when you’re out in the sun and heat.
4// Hair Masques
A fantastic deep conditioning hair masque is a mix of 2 tbsp of plain greek yogurt, 1 tbsp, 1 tbsp of honey, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp of squeezed lemon and 1 tbsp of coconut oil. Â Or you could do this other hair masque: 1 mango, 1 banana, 1 tbsp of coconut oil and 3tbsp of plain yogurt. Do this once a week and leave it in overnight. You’ll have soft shiny hair in the morning when you rinse it with a mild shampoo.
5// Do not wash your hair every day.
I know that we are taught to wash our hair everyday, and your hair can get really greasy next day but shampooing every day strips your hair of essential oils. What I do since I’m someone who has greasy roots and dry ends is shampoo day one and day two I’ll just rinse my hair with water. If I’m greasy, I’ll wash with the tiniest amount of shampoo. In summer, I tend to live in french braids, so I’m not touching my hair through the day which helps so much.
What do you do to keep your hair healthy in summer?
